The Health Secretary has explained the NHS 1% pay rise awarded to half of staff today is non-consolidated, which means wages will go back down at the end of the year. This is not the case for the rest of the public sector.

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Josie Irwin, from the Royal College of Nursing, told ITV News' Deputy Political Editor Chris Ship that nurses will be "very, very angry" over today's announced pay deal and would not rule out taking industrial action over the issue.

Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, has told ITV News' Deputy Political Editor Chris Ship the government's pay deal to public sector workers is a "right, fair balance".

It was announced today that public sector workers will receive a one per cent increase to their pay, apart from those who already receive "progresson-in-job" increases due their length of service. These increases are typically worth more than three per cent.

The Unite union says it will be consulting its health service members on possible industrial action following the Government's refusal to sanction the recommended one per cent pay rise for all NHS staff.

Unite said the Health Secretary’s decision to accept the recommendation of the independent Pay Review Body, for only those not receiving annual increments, was a "divide and rule" tactic and will see about 45 per cent of the NHS workforce getting no cost of living pay increase at all from April 1.

Rachael Maskell, of Unite, said: “Jeremy Hunt has adopted a divide and rule tactic which calls into serious question the relevance of the so-called independent PRB.

“He is deliberately muddying the waters by trying to imply that the annual increment that staff receive, as they gain more skills to benefit patients throughout their careers, is part of the annual pay increase – it is not. It is despicable that Hunt has adopted such an underhand tactic."